The Ice Network has a cool article up about Meryl Davis and Charlie White dancing on Dancing With The Stars. The article features interviews with them and their dance partners Sharna Burgess and Maks Chmerkovskiy. Below is a take about their goals and what it’s been like working with each other so far. Note how they’ve been rehearsing in Michigan since Meryl and Charlie are also getting ready to tour for “Stars On Ice“.

“It really is fascinating to work with Meryl,” he added. “I’m not stressing out about anything. I’m not worrying about anything. I’m just enjoying her company; she’s a cool chick.”

White, 26, will be dancing with Sharna Burgess, 28, who is bubbling with enthusiasm about the possibilities this season presents. Their first dance will be contemporary.

After working together for just a few hours, White has already taught her a new lift that they’ll use at the end of their routine.

“Charlie is absolutely wonderful; he has such beautiful lines,” Burgess said. “For me, it’s so amazing to be this creative, to have so much freedom in the steps and the choreography that I want to do. He’s wonderful to talk to about my concepts and the characters because I dived straight into that, and he seems to love it.”

She asked him to listen to the song to which they’ll perform and asked his thoughts on the story line. White’s response mirrored Burgess’ ideas. At the start of each season, teams are allowed to submit wish lists for music. White and Burgess prepared their lists separately, but when they compared notes, found a lot of similarity.

After the cast announcement Tuesday, both teams headed to Michigan to train. Davis and White are also preparing for the upcoming Stars on Ice tour. Their partners will accompany them on the road and train between shows.

In other things with Meryl and Charlie….according to Entertainment Weekly, ABC has announced a deal with Disson Skating to air a series of four 2-hour figure skating specials which will star Meryl and Charlie. The first two specials will air in the fall of 2014. What an exciting year for them and it’s so cool how Dancing With The Stars is a part of it all.

I'm a fashion and music fan....and I have always loved dancing too of any kind. Dancing With The Stars seems to have this way of bringing all of those things together. One of my favorite dancing quotes at the moment: "No matter what, nobody can take away the dance you've already had...." ~Gleb Savchenko . For fun music and dance mixes, visit WilUnleashed Soundcloud. To view my photography site, see Lisa Kay Photography.

Given Sharna’s more incorporative style verses Maks’ dictatorial one, I can see her & Charlie having more synergy than Meryl & Maks. While mismatched in personality and physicality, Meryl’s ability and demeanor is good for Maks in the sense that she’ll likely be low drama and able to learn complex routines quickly, ultimately leading to less footage of his offputting tantrums. OTOH, he does seem to get bored with the less dramatic, more straight laced partners. In the end, I predict his lack of discipline, over-the-top intensity and subpar Freestyling will again be his downfall. Though, this line about giving his family one more chance to see him on TV combined with what he indicated previously about TPTB guaranteeing a win to lure pros back…Yeah, coming from Maks this could well mean nothing, but given the ever increasing staging of the show and the shenanigans we’ve already seen this season, it does make me wonder if the writing’s already on the wall here.

I have enjoyed Maks occasionally, so I’m hoping that with Meryl that a good Maks will show up. I do think they’re mismatched – both Meryl and Charlie said what they loved about working with Derek was how positive he was, and the energy and creativity he brings to what he does, and Maks is the polar opposite of Derek in a lot of ways, so Meryl is going having a very different journey than the one she was hoping for. However, I prefer Meryl with Maks to having her with Tony or Val, so I guess there is something to be grateful for.

I’m have so many negative feelings about the Maks and Meryl pairing beyond the fact they are obviously mismatched and that fact alone(when she ASKED for Derek AND there are several pros more her size and they always say size match is important in the pairings)OBVIOUSLY tell you that something foul is probably afoot.(never forget the LUDICROUS outcome of Ssn 15)

The OTHER reason I am sorry that Meryl is not with Derek, I love both her and Charlie, and know that Derek would have been able to show and bring out the fun and sexy Meryl. I think “fun” with Maks is gonna look fake and sexy will look skeevey. I really think putting all my favoritism towards certain people aside that TPTB REALLY screwed up in many ways this season. That being said, I hope Sharna and Charlie can bust it out and wipe the floor with MandM and then I hope Derek and Amy end up winning it all. I don’t think it’s likely at this point, but I guess we’ll have to just wait and see. But beyond my usually wanting Derek’s partners to win, I have 2 or 3 other agendas driving me this season and hopefully I’m not alone. You would think the Chum bros and othr slackers would want to win based on their talent not how effective they are at manipulating and whining but NAAAH! Wonder if Conrad has ever thought abt just GIVING Maks or Val a MBT ? I’m sure they’d be just fine with that and maybe audiences wouldn’t have to miss out on so many great possibilities that way.

I’m really excited to see what Charlie and Sharna can do together. It sounds like they’re going to have a good collaborative partnership, and hopefully that will translate into chemistry on the dance floor.

A lift at the end of their routine? Can they end with a lift or will that bring down the wrath of the oh-so-inconsistent Lift Nazi and earn a sour warning from Len about rule-breaking?

On a related note, I’m looking forward to comparing The Stooges’ responses to Charlie vs. Meryl vs. Danica. If they pick at Charlie and swoon over Meryl and/or Danica, we’ll know the storyboards are being drawn up to end the season with one of the C-bros lifting the MBT.

Once again, both Maks and Val have brought their (female) relatives into the conversation. On Tuesday Val said he was glad Maks was back because now his grandmother would stop asking him why Maks is not on the show. And Maks has now “dedicated” this season’s performance to his mom and grandma. I have posted about this before, and it seems I’m the only one who is bothered by this stuff. In my view, their family has stunted their maturity by keeping them tied to them, hence their outrage when they aren’t perceived as the princes that their family has always told them they are. Maks did seem a bit subdued on Tuesday, but I’m certain that’s short-lived. I’m thrilled about Charlie being with Sharna (she was my pick for him), but I feel really badly for Meryl. At least she will have breaks performing with Charlie to resuscitate her soul.

I’m really stoked to see what kind of choreography Sharna does with Charlie. It does sound like they’re keeping Contemporary as a 1st. week dance, which I don’t like, however I can honestly say that I can’t wait to see Sharna and Charlie’s Contemporary.

I’ve decided to have a wait and see attitude toward the Meryl and Maks partnership. I have faith she can handle his moodiness. She’s a strong woman. I just wish she had a pro with a better track record of good choreography.

I just went over to Stars on Ice and looked at the schedule. Charlie and Meryl are going to be VERY busy. It looks like they have 3-4 shows a week, every week from early April to mid May. I know Evan did it, but I don’t know how anyone of them do. It looks like they won’t be getting back to LA until very late on Sunday most weeks. I can’t imagine going back and forth between ice dancing and ballroom dancing and learning routines while traveling between cities.

The article Vogue posted also confirmed Contemporary for Charlie & Sharna. Maks talked about introducing Meryl to foundational steps in Cha Cha and Rumba, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see them lead off with the Cha Cha.

My hats off to them for their duel duty with touring. But sometimes it’s better to have a full plate. I’m sure these Olympic champs are not stranger to hard work, long hours and lots of travel nor are their pros. I think it may actually benefit the Meryl/Maks partnership by giving him more structure outside the studio which may make for smoother sailing within.

wynn, I hope you’re right that being away from Hollywood will be a positive thing overall for Maks and Meryl. I also hope seeing Meryl on the ice, in her element, doing what she does best makes him see her more as an artistic equal, someone who deserves respect, rather than just his student who needs to do whatever he tells her to do, without questioning. On the other hand, the stress and exhaustion of all the traveling, being out of his element (that’s hard on a control freak), and getting limited practice time could make him even more cranky and impatient than before.

Good point, PH. Speaking of points, I can just see one of the Stooges telling Amy she needs to work on pointing her toes.

All black humor aside, I don’t know much about prosthetics especially really high-end ones. Will Amy be able to create any kind of a toe point, like in an arabesque? It won’t make a bit of difference to viewers, who will be enthralled by her performance, but we know Len will be looking to find fault with Derek’s partner.

@Cidra – One of my sorority sisters interned with a company that made both artificial joints and prostheses. At the time, they were working on a prototype prosthetic hand that actually measured signals from the brain in order to create movement in the prosthetic fingers (much the same way a real hand works – your brain sends signals telling the fingers to move). It was still in the design phase, but from the way she made it sound, they were AT LEAST 20 years away from having a viable product to market to amputees – so much R&D involved with neurologists, orthopedists, clinical trials, etc. The world has come a long way since the days of peg legs, but it seems that we have yet to take the next step from prostheses that just strap onto the body without any sort of neural connection tp prostheses that actually can interact with the brain & nerves to mimic the action of a real limb. I would imagine that’s what it would take in order for Amy to really, effectively point her toes. Until then, I guess we can just hope that the judges understand that Amy just can’t “point her toes” like all the other contestants. And honestly, unless they want the ACLU branding them as “ignorant” or “discriminatory against amputees”, I think the judges would be wise to tread carefully around critiquing her footwork too harshly.

It will make my blood boil if they criticize her for not pointing her toes. You can yell all you want about a blind person not seeing, a deaf person not hearing, a dead person not breathing and someone who doesn’t actually have toes not pointing them, it’s not going to change what they can do.

And it’s wrong for people to think that Amy and Derek’s challenge is only 2X the challenge Heather and Jonathon faced. If you have one leg with normal muscle control and normal sensation including tactile, but especially proprioceptive and and kinesthetic, it’s exceedingly more easy to generate any kind of normal movement than if you don’t have either. Not to say it isn’t a challenge, of course it is and I have a lot of respect for how well those 2 did. Just saying the challenge for Amy is quite a bit more than twofold.

Court, thanks for the info on where we are at this time in prosthetic technology. With all the wounded warrior amputees returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, I really hope we can speed up the process of making interactive prostheses a reality and get them to those who need them. In the past wars have hastened advances in medical science and treatment. (Maybe it’s a horrible case of “necessity being the mother of invention” or “if their’s a big enough market we can recoup the cost of the R&D”.) I hope that’s the case this time around.

No question the Stooges would be fools to say anything about Amy’s footwork, but while I don’t think any of them are inherently cruel people, they’ve all suffered from memory lapses and foot-in-mouth disease, saying things they probably regretted, but almost never apologize for.

This is a delicate situation. To be equitable to all the couples, they must judge Amy on the aspects of the dance that are within her ability to control, but not demand the impossible. I’m a bit dubious that our judging panel (and this show) has the ability to be that nuanced (although to be fair, they did a pretty decent job with Valerie).

When you see Amy working with Derek in one of the vids where you can see some footwork, it looks they are working effectively together. It looks like that Derek has to work a little differently too, using different leverage and push-pulling her more with turns, etc.? It’s kind of hard to tell from the little that’s shown but I’ll bet Derek is busy re-inventing to help her as much as possible.

Courtney, do you know if these dancing legs Amy mentioned have a mechanism of some sort that can help her achieve(or simulate) the roll-pivot on the outsides of the feet that is a big part of movement in dances? She sounds very determined and I think everyone knows by now, she has the best partner possible for this in every way. I really hope they can make this an extra-ordinary story and lesson for everyone. I think they will both come away from this having had many overwhelming and gratifying moments and be changed in some way forever.

They are both already brave, positive people and I think they might just give a whole new definition to the words inspiring and beautiful.

Yeah, I wondered the same thing! My guess is they’re going to have to have the functionality and durability of her “athletic” legs combined with the look of her “dress” legs. When I googled Amy, I found a really cute picture of her sitting on a couch with several pairs of legs lined up in front of her. It was from a 2009 article so she probably has some new ones by now.

I keep thinking about that dancer in Boston who lost both her lower legs in the Marathon bombing. Derek told her that he would dance with her when she’s ready, and now he’ll have the benefit of all this experience to help her. I know it will make him very happy to be able to help her so much. I hope she’ll be watching this season.

I think this is the one partner that could cause Derek to come unglued a bit if she were to be criticized in a way that he sees a inherently unfair and or ridiculous. And he wouldn’t be the only one. I tend to think they will be rather careful with Amy, if only to avoid handing her the competition via being assholes to her.

I’m going to say something and it might get you mad at me Heidi for saying it. The judges treating Amy differently is a double edged sword. If they are assholes to her Derek and pretty much all of America just might want to meet them out back in the alley.

If they treat her different….well, certain pros have been known to open their mouths and say things that are not appropriate, especially when it comes to Derek or his partner. Something I have felt in the past that is encouraged by TPTB.

Even though they will be the ones that come off looking the ass Amy will still have to hear it. And this, is so friggin different from what Len ever told Amber last season. I’m sure she will be ok and can handle whatever crap someone might throw at her but my point is she shouldn’t have to.

Or maybe I’m just being a negative ninny and should hope that everyone will behave themselves.

I just found articles talking about Meryl having a form of dyslexia, which causes her to lack depth perception and this is one of the reasons Charlie seems so protective of her. For example when they are on the ice during warm ups, he is the one who has to make sure they avoid running into the boards or other skaters. Knowing this makes what they have accomplished even more amazing. I do hope Maks can be both protective and fun with her and enjoy the experience of dancing with a very gifted artist.

Interesting info, KarenT. I hope Meryl has been upfront with Maks about this depth perception issue. If he’s aware of it from the get-go, he has the opportunity to take it into account. If he finds out about it after he’s had a blow-up over what seems to be a lack of focus, attention, whatever, on her part, it might be hard to recover from.

I would guess since the 2 pairs (MnM, SharChar) are traveling together, they will all be spending a lot of time together with plenty of time for Charlie to help Maks understand what works in partnering Meryl. Plus I would guess that Meryl is pretty good at getting the most from her coaches including letting them know about any challenges she may have. Honestly, I think Maks is going to be on his best behavior. He’s had a break, perhaps gotten back some perspective, and so far, he’s been clear that he knows he has a great partner. I really hope so anyway.

As I think about it, since Sharna loves Maks, I think they’re great friends, and clearly Charlie and Meryl have big love and respect for each other, those 2 teams, in the early weeks will likely do all they can to boost the other. For a few or several weeks they’ll likely have the luxury of being so much better than several others that they won’t have to really compete against each other.

Another thought, Maks will not be anything less than super supportive for a while if for no other reason than wanting to increase his chance of being able to hold on to his great get after the switch.

I’m not talking about criticizing something she’s done wrong, Cher, I’m talking about their typical assholery that is blatantly unfair and idiotic. There is good judging – something that Derek, Amy and all of America can look at and say “Yeah, that was fair.” And then there is stupid as fuck judging, like “You had too many props” or “there was a lift” right after someone else (Val, Maks, Tony, Mark) also used props or a lift and it didn’t get mentioned. EVERYONE should have the good judging and none of the bad judging. That sort of thing bugs Derek with ANY partner, but I sense that with Amy he might hear critique like that and be more likely to lose his shit. Really, does she need any more challenges? And I think most of the audience would say that as well. I just get the feeling that DEREK is much more protective of this partner.

As for what the other pros might say? Fuck them. Derek’s partners have ALWAYS been treated differently and not in a good way.

Oh man, I remember four years ago I thought that Meryl’s eyes were set too widely apart and I joked that it probably messed up her depth perception. Now I feel like a shmuck. They both seem like lovely people and I’m sure they’ll do well. I’m just bracing myself for the Partner versus Partner storyline that the producers are going to shove down our throats.

I’m just praying that Amy can do the basic requirements of each dance because if she can when the judges start nit-picking, Derek would be right to point that out. They’ve admitted in the past that they judge people differently. They held Nicole S. to a ridiculously high standard because of what they considered extensive dance experience. I guess what I am saying is if Amy can do requirements and Derek embellishes and fills out with beautiful choreography but they take points(or ALOT of points) because she can’t point her feet in the usual way, he SHOULD lose his shit. After all there have been quite a few winners of DWTS that weren’t perfect in their technique by a long shot. I think based on the audience forgiveness factor with Rob K and Jack O. who were pretty good in one style and awful in another, taking them all the way to third place, the same should be true with Amy. And from that point to winning, will just depend on a lot of other factors.

I think Amy is pretty tough and that Derek has prepared her for backlash. I think he’s been telling his partners that for a while. It’s a shame though, especially when other pros don’t remember that each partner is a new beginning. And with this one, it is just ridiculous considering all the obstacles Amy faces I don’t know what it will take for people to stop saying Derek is ALWAYS favored ? maybe if she had no arms also? And at this point, especially, the way Derek has produced for this show and ALL of his partners, when other pros start all this pettiness they just look stupid and desperate. I do hope that Derek does just tell them to “shut it” this time.

@jess, good point! I think it will be an interesting dynamic between those two pairs (M&M, SharChar), because they will probably end up being closer than any two pairs. (That may make me sound like an idiot, but…)

And just a retrospective thing, I think that Amy has the potential to be the best partner that Derek has ever had.

I think that Max will be on his best behavior too. If the surly side of him shows up that will make him look very bad in the Industry both dance and entertainment industry because Meryl (and Charlie) seem to be really well liked and highly respected by everyone for talent/artistic ability/dedication plus they are very articulate and I think he realizes that he is not the only one in the partnership that has been training since childhood and is really a precision athlete.

My guess is Maks intends to be a good partner and will try. Intellectually he gets this stuff we’ve been talking about. Problem is when things heat up or don’t play out as he thinks they should, he doesn’t seem to have a lot of self-control (over his emotions, his words, or his behavior). I’m just going to hope for the best.

Sounds like Charlie has been Meryl’s protector for years, so things could get tense if Maks behaves badly. That would be a real shame since not only would Meryl’s chances of getting to the finals be jeopardized, but Charlie’s as well.

I think that Amy will certainly be the partner that is most fulfilling and rewarding to work with, Aviva.

I saw one interview or article in the last day or two that implied Derek was out for good until he found out that he could have Amy as a partner. Don’t know if that is true, but that’s what they said. It would not surprise me at all.

Maks has a partner he can win with and he better not get totally over the top. If he plays as a good SUPPORTIVE partner, this will work. Hold in that temper and work with Meryl. My concern is this switching of partners. I think that is a stupid idea, but we’ll see how that work out. I think Meryl would probably be terrific with Derek. It sounds like its going to be an exciting season!